


Until the Ashes of Eden Fall

by elcten881



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F, Goddesses, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Temporarily Unrequited Love, welcomemat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-23
Updated: 2020-04-13
Packaged: 2020-10-26 20:44:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20748470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elcten881/pseuds/elcten881
Summary: In which Tzuyu is a baby gay panicking everytime Son Chaeyoung breathes near her, but can't do anything about it because her crush is in love with Aphrodite's daughter. Why did her mother have to be Goddess of Virgins----Hunting....she means hunting.





	1. Tzuyu Goddess of Virgins

** **Until the Ashes of Eden Fall** **

** **

Love is stupid.

Tzuyu may have known very little about the world outside the camp but she knew enough to know that love and attraction were very stupid things. Unfortunately for her, when you fill a camp with a large group of hormonal teenagers you are likely to see signs of it everywhere. Boys commenting on the appearance of the girls that passed them, girls gushing over who the hottest guy was, boys chasing boys, girls kissing girls - it was everywhere. And Tzuyu couldn’t stand it. If it were up to her concepts like love would be out of the equation, instead one would simply pass on their lineage to whomever was deemed an appropriate specimen. Though she could willingly admit that this mind set was probably due to her mother being the goddess of both hunting and chastity. Basically, she loved animals and was queen of virgins - an ancient Greek crazy cat lady.

That’s what this camp was for, it homed the mortal children of the Gods until they were able to either ascend to Olympus to join their parents or return to the mortal realm to live as humans did. Tzuyu’s mother, Artemis, was the Goddess of Hunting….Tzuyu would usually skip the whole virgin part, her mother could swear up and down that Tzuyu was immaculate conception but nobody truly believed her. Either way she didn’t know who her father was, nor did she wish too. Her mother loved her, she loved and protected all children, Tzuyu loved her mother just as much. Growing up it had been just them in the woods together, surrounded by the many woodland animals. She missed her mother when she began at the camp. Luckily, she was quickly introduced to Momo (daughter of the muse Terpsichore - Goddess of Dance), the muses were good friends of her mother and her Uncle Apollo.

Still, once Momo began dating the daughter of Paidia (Goddess of Play and Amusement), Dahyun, the duo stopped seeing as much of one another. Paidia was the attendant of Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love and one of the main Goddess’ in Olympus. These “top tier Gods” were made up of: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Apollo, Hestia, Aphrodite and Athena. Some of which had children of their own attending the camp. These girls made up a social group in the camp that everyone wanted to be in, they were like royalty. There was their leader, Jihyo, the daughter of Zeus. She was training to be a good and just leader in order to join her father in Olympus one day. Then it was Nayeon, daughter of Poseidon, she was a walking contradiction: daughter of the god of the sea but couldn’t swim. Jeongyeon was the daughter of Hestia, goddess of family and home, she was just as OCD about domestic cleaning as her mother was. Sana and Mina were the twin daughters of Aphrodite, both beautiful with a large number of suitors lining up for the chance to be close to them. With them Dahyun was allowed to join the group, which later meant Momo could join also. The final member of the group was the daughter of Athena, the second source of Tzuyu’s hatred of love - Chaeyoung.

When Momo had joined their group she had requested Tzuyu also be invited, but the younger turned it down purely because of Chaeyoung. The girl cause Tzuyu unknown torment by simply smiling and waving at her across the courtyard. Her heart would begin to pound, her palms would sweat and the cold demeanour her mother taught her to see off potential suitors would crumble in an instant. For there was the problem, Tzuyu had somehow fallen in love with the daughter of Athena. It was sad really, she had fallen so hard for a girl she had never once spoken to. They only knew each other through Momo, that was enough to earn small smiles of greeting but other than that Tzuyu had never said two words to her. Again, she purely blamed her mother - the woman’s constant preaching of chastity meant Tzuyu had no idea of how to even talk with women let alone flirt.

It wouldn’t even matter if she could.

The daughters of Aphrodite were as beautiful as their mother, they were adored by nearly everyone. Sana leaned into it, enjoying the attentions she received from her many suitors, loving the feel of having people constantly at her beck and call. Mina, however, preferred to focus on finding her true love, sending away any fool that tried to seduce her as they did her sister. It was well known that Chaeyoung was one of these fools, only she and Mina were friends and so Mina ignored any advances in lieu of preserving their strong friendship. Chaeyoung, being the daughter of wisdom, was smart enough to know not to proclaim her feelings until she was sure they were returned so instead chose to silently dote on Mina. She thought she was subtle but Tzuyu was not an idiot, she knew the other girl loved Mina.

And why wouldn’t she? The younger daughter of Aphrodite was everything Tzuyu was not, open with all manners of love and sensuality. Not awkward about such matters like Tzuyu was. Chaeyoung following Mina like a love sick puppy ended up causing Tzuyu more pain than she could handle, it was nauseating. So in order to avoid them both, Tzuyu spent her time in the forests surrounding the camp. She would sit quietly with a book or her bow and let the animals on the forest curl into her side as she read. Her mother had allowed Tzuyu to raise a pack of hunting dogs in her youth and so she had been allowed to bring them, permitted they remained in the forests and not venture into camp. It was confusing for most, how someone could both love animals and hunt them. She rarely hunted the innocent ones, usually if she had to hunt she would hunt for predators or over populated species in order to keep the ecosystem the way it should be. Hours would be spent in the forests, ignoring thoughts of the dimpled demi-god that followed the daughter of Aphrodite. Eventually, a disciple (a devout follower of one of the top tier Gods that helped maintain the camp) would appear and request she return for dinner. Then she would be forced to watch from afar as Chaeyoung stared at Mina.

And it would kill her every time.

“Tzuyu!” Momo called, spotting her as she walked towards the forest that morning,

Tzuyu turned to smile at her friend as she approached, “Good morning, Mo.”

The older girl linked arms with her as they walked through the courtyard, “Planning to disappear again today?”

“I wouldn’t say disappear,” Tzuyu sighed, “I’m only in the forest.”

Momo sent her a look. Nobody quite knew Tzuyu as well as Momo did, they had grown up together. In another world she was sure they’d have made an attractive couple but they were too close as sisters to become anything more. Momo was sweet and kind, the only one besides her mother that cared for animals the way Tzuyu did. They knew everything about each other, Tzuyu knew Momo had a crush on Dahyun since they met on the first day of camp and Momo was well aware of Tzuyu’s less than subtle crush of the daughter of Athena. Sure, they weren’t together every moment of the day now but they would always be close.

“I think you should talk to her.”

“To who?”

Momo smirked, “Don’t play dumb, that’s my thing.”

Tzuyu rolled her eyes, “If I told her she’d think I was insane.”

“Did I say tell her?” Momo’s smirk didn’t fade, “I said talk. Have a conversation. Y’know….not stare at her like a creepy stalker.”

“And what would I even say?” Tzuyu asked,

“How about hello?” Momo groaned, “Just sit with us for breakfast, then you can go all mysterious woodland woman again.”

Tzuyu stopped walking and turned to look at her friend, “I don’t know…”

“Come on,” Momo pouted, “Just one meal, please? I always talk about you too them and I’m pretty sure they think I’m lying about being friends with you.”

Cue another eye-roll, “Fine. But if I make an idiot of myself--”

“Which you probably will.”

“--I’ll blame you.”

“I feel like you would even if I was nowhere near the situation.” 

Not waiting for what she would assume a quick and witty reply, Momo dragged Tzuyu away towards the cafeteria. Nobody really gave them any notice as they entered, they were children of lesser gods so nobody really cared for them enough to notice. They walked passed Tzuyu’s usual seat right at the back of the hall and headed for the platform right at the front where the largest table was. Tzuyu’s nerves heightened the closer they got to where the most revered demi-gods were sat, laughing together. Dahyun stood when they got closer, Momo breaking away to greet her girlfriend as Tzuyu awkwardly hung back. Ignoring the glares sent by the fangirls/boys of Aphrodite who were mad she appeared to be joining the big table.

“Who’s your friend, Momo?” Sana asked, the only one to take note of the quiet girl’s appearance,

Tzuyu felt her breath catch for moment, the daughters of Aphrodite were indeed prettier up close.

“This is Tzuyu, daughter of Artemis.” Momo introduced with a smile,

Sana smiled, raising an eyebrow, “The Goddess of Virgins?”

Tzuyu cleared her throat, “The hunt….Goddess of the Hunt.”

“Relax,” Sana winked, “Only pulling your leg, Momo’s spoken of you a lot.”

Sana scared Tzuyu and she wasn’t entirely sure why.

Luckily, Dahyun pulled the girl into her and Momo’s conversation and Tzuyu was able to sit down in peace. She sat quietly as the conversation flowed around her, she was always good at fading into the background. It meant she could watch the object of her affection from a distance, Chaeyoung was sat at the opposite side of table saying something to Mina and Jeongyeon that made Jeongyeon bellow with laughter and Mina giggle in her quiet way. Whenever she earned a giggle Chaeyoung would brighten, every feature would illuminate and she’d somehow look more beautiful. Tzuyu had to remind herself that Chaeyoung wasn’t smiling at her, she hadn’t even noticed Tzuyu’s presence. That was until Jihyo happened to look up and notice that there was a new face at their table.

“Who is that?” She asked, having inherited her fathers booming voice all the girls looked round,

Tzuyu suck slightly at all the eyes now on her, including Chaeyoung’s.

“This is my friend Tzuyu,” Momo smiled, “Told you I knew her.”

Nayeon laughed, “We didn’t doubt you knew her Momo---”

“Just doubted she was really your friend.” Jeongyeon quipped, the smile on her face showing it wasn’t a malicious comment,

Momo poked her tongue out and wrapped her arms around Tzuyu’s limp one, “Best friends, right Tzu?”

“I’m pretty much stuck with you.”

Momo pouted and cuddled into Dahyun instead, “Why are you all ganging up on me?”

“You invited me here.” Tzuyu shrugged,

There was a giggle at the end of the table and Tzuyu’s eyes found the source. Chaeyoung smiled kindly at her and all Tzuyu could do was look away, she was simply to much of a gay mess to keep eye contact. She never realised how difficult it would be, seeing her crush close up. Chaeyoung had recently dyed her hair blonde and it suited her well, as her face lit up in a dimpled smile it made Tzuyu’s legs feel wobbly and she started awkwardly poking at her food as a distraction - praying nobody could see her blush. Momo subtly nudged her in the ribs, teasing her without drawing attention. However, this small move was caught by someone else at the table who immediately connected the dots, luckily the rest of the group had quickly gone back to their previous conversations.

Breakfast inched by for Tzuyu, while she liked being close to her crush and hanging with Momo for the first time in ages it was hard watching as Chaeyoung focused all her attentions on Mina. Tzuyu couldn’t even fault the youngest daughter of Aphrodite for it, she was quiet and nice and Tzuyu understood that the shy girl couldn’t help Chaeyoung’s feelings. It would have been so much easier if Mina was a creature of pure evil but she wasn’t, in fact Tzuyu saw a lot of similarities between herself and Mina. The moment breakfast was over Tzuyu waited for Momo to be distracted before slipping off to get her bow. Nobody, to her knowledge, noticed her leave as she was pretty sure they’d forgotten she was there. It was only when she reached the safety of the tree line she felt the awkwardness from the meal disappear.

Tzuyu took a deep breath, inhaling the pine scent of the forest - her home. She let out a loud whistle as she walked further into the trees, barking sounded in the distance and soon four large dogs tackled Tzuyu to the ground. She laughed as they all wrestled to lick her face, they missed her when she left them and for her to come later than usual today worried them. They were loyal, as only a pack of hunting dogs could be. After a moment she pushed them away, sitting up and patting the four slobbering, excited heads. At least some people in this place loved her, her thoughts went back to how Chaeyoung looked at Mina and she stood, not wanting to continue the self pity party. Once on her feet she opened up her satchel and pulled out a wad of bacon she had taken from the cafeteria, throwing it away from her. The dogs let out loud barks as they sprinted away to find where it landed, fighting each other over it.

Using the distraction to her advantage Tzuyu pulled a roll of parchment out of her satchel, she unrolled it as she walked forwards towards a large oak tree. As she usually used this oak tree for her practice there was already a nail sticking out of the bark. A string was attached at the top of the parchment to make a loop that could make the parchment hook over the nail to be displayed on the tree. She stepped back and straightened it, the makeshift archery target now visible. A squirrel ran down a low hanging branch to investigate the new decoration and Tzuyu smiled, gently raising a hand to stroke its cheek. It purred a little and rubbed itself into the girl’s palm. This was Tzuyu’s world, adorable woodland creatures, her pack of hounds lazing around with their bellies full of bacon, nothing but Tzuyu, her arrows and the gentle breeze rustling through the trees. Paradise.

_Snap._

_ _

The squirrel startled and scampered up the tree as quick as possible, the pack now rising to their feet and growling at whoever was disturbing the peaceful area. Tzuyu turned and saw she had been joined by…honestly the last person she ever expected.

“Tzuyu.” Sana greeted with what Tzuyu could only assume was supposed to be a heartshaking smile,

Tzuyu’s introverted nature prevented a reply. That and the fact she was still a panicking gay and Sana was an extremely attractive woman even if her heart would only ever belong to Chaeyoung. Tzuyu didn’t know why Sana was all the way out there, nobody ever came out here especially not the eldest daughter of Aphrodite.

“Cat got your tongue?”

Tzuyu cleared her throat, “W-What are you doing here?”

“I felt we needed a little talk,” Sana smirked, “Woman to woman.”

The hounds were still growling slightly, they weren’t used to outsiders - they only just stopped growling at Dahyun when Momo would bring her by. They loved Momo though, she grew up with Tzuyu and therefore with them too. She was part of their pack, Tzuyu was the leader and Momo was at the bottom so they protected her. Hence their initial hatred of Dahyun. Sana made their leader feel uncomfortable, so she must be a threat. Tzuyu hushed them softly, the growling becoming quite but leaving the dogs in their aggressive stance. She took her bow off her back, deciding not to show how startled she was. Her cold facade was her protection, so she focused on shooting at her target.

“Talk then.” Was all she said, lining up her shot,

“You know who my mother is?”

Tzuyu fired.

_9._

_ _

“Of course.” Tzuyu adjusted her trajectory, “Goddess of Love.”

Second shot fired.

_9._

_ _

Closer to the centre though this time.

“Then you understand I know a thing or two about crushes.”

Tzuyu hesitated, “Right…”

She fired once again.

_10._

That was better.

“Look you seem like a sweet girl,” Sana cut to the chase walking over and lowering Tzuyu’s bow, “But Chaeyoung is my friend, so I’m going to warn you now. She loves Mina and Mina may not realise it but they’re perfect for each other.”

“How can you be so sure?” Tzuyu began getting defensive,

Sana almost looked like she pitied her, “I’m set to take over my mother’s mantle, I know love. Mina deserves every happiness in this world and Chaeyoung can give her that. So I’m asking only once, stay away.”

Tzuyu shrugged her off and aimed again, “Who are you to tell me what to do?”

“I’m the Goddess of Love.” Sana told her sternly, “You are the Goddess of Virgins…who would really know better.”

_10._

She turned to glare at Sana, “Goddess of Hunting.”

Sana shrugged, “You say tomato, I say virgin.”

“Look I’m well aware it’s one sided, I’m not gonna make a move so you can save your protective big sister speech.”

Tzuyu notched her next arrow.

Sana beamed, “At least you know your place.”

The arrow flew past the target into the woods behind the tree.

“Place? The hell does that mean?”

Sana looked genuinely confused, “Tzuyu, be serious. We’re top tier and you….you’re of a lower Godly status.”

_Umm….what!?_

_ _

Who did she think she was? She did know she wasn’t her mother, right?

Tzuyu scoffed, she’d heard enough, “Get out of my forest.”

The dogs sensed Tzuyu’s rare temper spike and began growling again, Sana’s smile didn’t fade but she did raise her hands in surrender, “No need to be so testy, I’ll go. Just remember what I said.”

Then she turned and walked out of the forest, leaving a seething Tzuyu to turn back to her target and aim again.

“How could I forget it?” She muttered, firing her arrow again,

_Dead centre._


	2. Chaeyoung Goddess of the Friendzone

** **Chaeyoung Goddess of the Friendzone** **

** **

Chaeyoung loved Friday afternoons.

The others always had plans which meant she and Mina could hang out in the older girl’s room alone. They would never do much, just laze around watching the television that Sana had “convinced” some of the boys at camp to sneak in for them. Chaeyoung never really cared what they watched, it was usually some anime show that she never truly took notice of, she mostly just watched Mina. Smiling brightly whenever the object of her affections laughed at what was on screen, a rare sound nobody outside of their little group heard - Mina loudly laughing without a care in the world, it was when she looked the most beautiful. Her favourite part was that it was just them, alone, she loved the other girls but sometimes it was nice to have one on one time with her crush. No Jeongyeon to tease her, or Sana to try and push them together, no Nayeon or Jihyo trying to convince them that Chaeyoung wasn’t old enough for relationships. Just Chae and Mina….

….which is why when Mina told her their friends had planned to go and play hide and seek in the forest, as opposed to their usual plans, Chaeyoung felt her chest ache. She sulked the entire walk from Sana and Mina’s shared cabin, not even greeting the others when they met with them at the forest entrance. If she hadn’t been busy sulking she would have sensed something was off, Mina and Sana weren’t talking - the air between the duo was tense. Mina herself was walking ahead of them, determination set in stone on her face as if she had something difficult that she needed to do. However, since Chaeyoung was an artist by nature she was usually away with the fairies making her to oblivious to really read the atmosphere within the situations surrounding her. The group were stood under the first row of trees, Momo practically vibrating with excitement at going back to the place she knew.

“Hey guys!” Jihyo called in greeting, “You’re late!”

“Sorry…” Sana sighed, “Mina and I were talking about something important.”

Mina rolled her eyes and walked away from her sister, Chaeyoung following like the lap dog she was. It was Nayeon who floated the idea of teams. It meant they wouldn’t have to go through the forest alone, the only person who knew it well enough to find her way around by herself was Tzuyu but Zeus only knows where she was. As the main group began deciding teams Chaeyoung just shyly looked at Mina.

“Want to be on a team togeth---”

“How do I look?” Mina asked suddenly,

Chaeyoung was definitely taken aback, “I…Uhh….huh…?”

Mina looked down at herself, running her hands down herself to smooth her outfit, “Do my clothes look okay? Maybe I should have gone with the other one…”

Suddenly, Chaeyoung got the power of speech again, “You look perfect….you always look perfect.”

Mina turned to look at her, a strange sadness in her eyes. The second part of Chaeyoung’s sentence had not been meant for Mina to here, it was like word vomit - accidentally tumbling past her lips before she could stop it. Mina wasn’t dumb, she knew what Chaeyoung felt for her was a little more than platonic. They were so close as friends that for as long as Chaeyoung never confessed, Mina could pretend there was nothing more. But sometimes there were these moments where Chaeyoung would be caught staring or would say something too honest and Mina would be reminded that a day would have to come where she broke Chaeyoung’s heart.

“Chae…”

“Sorry,” Chaeyoung interrupted, “It just slipped out. Forget I said it.”

Mina sighed, “I can’t…not any more.”

She grabbed Chaeyoung’s hand and dragged her even further from the group to talk. Mina looked so nervous, like what she was about to say next was something awful not just a hard truth.

“Chae I love you, but not in the way you love me.” Mina finally said aloud, “I love being your friend, I love hanging out with you but that’s all. I’m sorry but…I….” Mina looked towards their group, “I’m in love with someone else.”

Chaeyoung, with unshed tears, looked to where Mina’s eyes were. Nayeon was watching Jeongyeon and Sana bicker over Jihyo, her eyes drifted to meet Mina’s and she smiled gently at her. In that moment something in Chaeyoung snapped in half, she always knew her feelings were one-sided but to have Mina finally say it caused more pain than she really knew how to process. She wouldn’t cry though, not in front of her. Instead she sniffed back her emotions and did as her mother would wish, she used logic rather than emotion. She decided that seperating herself some from Mina would be the best option.

“Nayeon!” She called with the lump in her throat, “I wanna go with Sana, can you be with Mina?”

Nayeon paused, looking between the two, “Of course.”

Once the teams were decided the others all ran into the forest leaving Sana and Chaeyoung alone to count under the tree. It was hard not to notice the little smiles Nayeon and Mina exchanged before running into the wooded area. Chaeyoung sat on a nearby log hiding her face in her hands, the elder girl stood off to the side watching her. She had been furious that her sister had not returned the admirations of Chaeyoung, that the burning love Chaeyoung had would go to waste. But Mina’s heart belonged to someone else and Sana just had to get over that, as would Chaeyoung.

“Are you alright?” Sana asked after a while,

Chaeyoung pulled her hands away with a huff, “Mind if we split up whilst seeking, I need some time to myself.”

She stood not really allowing Sana any time to answer as she walked past her.

“Of course, just don’t get lost.”

Chaeyoung didn’t respond verbally, instead she didn’t even turn as she non-committally waved over her shoulder. Not even bothering to look for anyone else she just walked through the trees, mind filled with depressing thoughts brought on by the firm rejection from Mina. She wondered what was wrong with her, what Nayeon had that she didn’t. The truth was there was probably a long list of aspects that made the eldest of their group the appropriate partner for the youngest daughter of Aphrodite. Chaeyoung felt somewhat angry that Mina couldn’t see how great they’d be together, she was the one who always made sure Mina was heard during conversations. She was the one who let the older girl cry time and time again on her shoulder. Every dream, every fight with Sana, ever single moment of Mina’s day could be told to her again and again and she would listen all night if she had to, even if she knew the stories every detail already.

Chaeyoung stopped…..oh her Zeus……She was in the friendzone.

That realisation cause her to let out a loud shout and kick a nearby pebble into the bushes next to her. Then a very new problem arose, the bush began rustling and a loud growl began to drift out from it. Chaeyoung took a step back, how could her day get any worse? A pair of eyes glared out from the bushes, the growling getting louder as two orange paws stepped out revealing one of the last animals she expected to see in a forest. It was a large, uncommon beast with orange fur and black stripes decorating its massive figure.

Oh…a tiger….yep that was enough to completely ruin her day.

She raised her hands in defence, trying to signal she was no threat but the tiger didn’t stop advancing. When it paused she watched it prepare to lunge and it was decided very quickly that she, whilst scrappy at best, was probably not about to beat a tiger in a head on fight….alone….with no weaponry or tactical skill. So what did she do? Ran. Ran like a little bitch. With a roar the tiger gave chase, mere centimetres from a flailing paw catching her heels. Chaeyoung screamed loudly, hoping to gain the attention of literally anyone to come save her. She ran through the woods, jumping over roots and bushes that attempted to trip her up during the run for her life. Then she began to hear more growling from around her. She cursed, it seemed to be coming from every direction now and fear coursed through her veins as she realised that she would most likely be ripped to shreds.

Then somehow it got even worse when she found herself meat with the bottom of what appeared to be a large rock face.

Chaeyoung began praying to every God and Goddess she could think of, she turned to face the tiger who had slowed to approach her carefully. Like it was toying with her. There was still growling coming from every direction, Chaeyoung was very….very…screwed. That was until a black blur flew out of the trees to her left and tackled the tiger onto its back, taking the beast by surprise. Then a grey blur cam from the other side as the tiger fought to regain control. Two more blurs appeared, one light brown and one dark brown - standing in front of Chaeyoung and growling at the tiger in a defensive stance. When they were close enough Chaeyoung realised that they were large dog-like creatures, not wolves but definitely not domesticated house dogs either.

The tiger grappled with the two that had attacked it, the black dog fighting from underneath while the grey hung off its back. In a moment of strength the tiger reared back causing the grey hound to go scattering into a bush and allowing the beast to focus on the dog beneath it. With a roar it caught the dog by the throat apparently seeking to rip it out.

“No!” Chaeyoung cried out, unable to stop herself,

_Woosh._

_ _

It was at that moment yet another (AN-O-THER!!) strange thing happened, an arrow flew from the treeline and impacted the dead centre of the tigers forehead. It slumped to the floor, obviously unable to survive the head shot. The dog beneath it whimpered and crawled out from under it, laying nearby to rest as the other hounds approached to lick its wounds. Chaeyoung searched the trees and locked eyes with her saviour, Tzuyu’s eyes looked sad as she stared at the now dead tiger. Like she regretted what she had done even though it would have killed the hounds and Chaeyoung if it could. Chaeyoung wanted to thank her, to ask her how she had been able to shoot like that, but couldn’t find the words. The sun was now shining on the clearing she realised she was stood in, the sunlight shining on the archer in such a way that for a brief moment Chaeyoung was once more completely tongue tied.

Even if she had been infatuated with Mina and Mina only, she could allow herself to admit that Artemis’ daughter was a specimen of pure beauty.

“Chaeyoung-ah!” Jeongyeon yelled as the group bounded into the clearing, wrapping her bro in a hug, “We saw you running from the tiger, are you okay?”

Jihyo pulled Jeongyeon from the short girl and began checking her over for injury, “What in Olympus is a tiger doing in these woods anyway?”

The others got to them after Jihyo had discovered that physically Chaeyoung was fine, if a little shaken. Momo was bringing up the rear with Dahyun only before she could reach the others she was tackled to the floor. Everyone went on edge as three dogs clambered over Momo…until they realised she was giggling at their attentions. The licked at her face, tails wagging happily, even the injured black hound began crawling over to where Momo could reach out to pet it softly, a sad look on her face.

“Aw, poor thing.” Momo cooed allowing the dog to nuzzle her hand weakly, she stood and noticed everyone staring at her confused, “What?”

“Told you,” Dahyun shrugged, “Not every girl has earned the love and attentions of a group of vicious hunting dogs.”

Mina and Nayeon looked on as the others laughed, hands joined following a conversation alone in the woods. Mina wanted to approach Chaeyoung and check she was alright, only for once when she sought out the girl’s face she wasn’t already looking at her. Instead Chaeyoung’s perplexed gaze was on Tzuyu, the girl was now kneeling by the dead tiger - head bowed. She was looking over it, having removed the arrow from it’s head. Her bow was on her back again and she paid no mind to the laughing girls behind her. Chaeyoung considered approaching but Tzuyu just looked sad, she didn’t know if the girl would appreciate her company. Deciding to go with the adrenaline she found could only be produced by a terrifying tiger chase sequence she walked over to stand next to Tzuyu.

“Thank you.” Chaeyoung mumbled quietly, “You didn’t need to save me.”

“Yes I did.” Tzuyu sent her a small smile, eyes still sad, then she looked back at the tiger and sighed, 

Tzuyu produced a trowel from her satchel. She stayed kneeling but shuffled a little away from the beast and began digging, she made quick work of it too quickly creating a large hole in the earth beneath them. Who keeps a mini shovels on their person at all times?

“What are you doing?” Chaeyoung asked,

“Everything and everyone deserves a proper burial.” Tzuyu replied, voice stressed from digging,

Chaeyoung paused, wondering if she was serious, “You do know it tried to kill me right?”

Tzuyu giggled lightly, “Animals aren’t like mortals, they don’t hunt for sport they hunt to survive - as should be the way. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Chaeyoung watched her dig for a moment, was this girl really sad that she had to kill an animal that was attacking someone? She looked around and noticed a large flat rock nearby, deciding to help she went to pick it up and help Tzuyu dig this grave. She knelt next to her saviour and began scraping the stone into the dirt to aid in the hole digging, Tzuyu stopped a second to watch her a moment before continuing. The moment was peaceful, even with the conversation going on in the background as Dahyun was bullied by the hounds (they were knocking her with their heads quite harshly). As Chaeyoung felt herself finally relax in the monotonous action, distracting her from the bad she had been having, Tzuyu was quietly panicking in gay at being so close to her unrequited crush. She played it cool though….by going red and refusing eye contact.

“Chaeyoung!” A shrill voice interrupted the moment,

Sana ran over to them, Tzuyu remembering her previous words ignored her and focused on digging.

“We’re going to start the game again, you coming?”

Chaeyoung considered a moment before looking at Tzuyu’s little shovel and the size of the beast, “No, I think it’s only polite I help her.”

Sana went to say something, but instead kept her mouth closed and walked away. Momo patted Tzuyu’s shoulder as she walked past, checking in and leaving the silent promise of “we’ll talk later”. Then it was just the two of them digging quietly, they didn’t say a word as they dug - truth is Chaeyoung was too deep in thought and Tzuyu was too busy being a panicked gay to offer any real conversation. It was times like this Tzuyu wished she was good with words, even if it made her sad the way she killed the tiger was kind of badass and if she had the perfect, smoothest line she probably could have wooed Chaeyoung. Only she didn’t…because her mother was the Goddess of Virgins.

Chaeyoung couldn’t say how long the duo dug for but eventually Tzuyu stopped her, they were now both stood in the hole and definitely sweating more than Chaeyoung thought she would be today. Tzuyu wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, she met Chaeyoung’s eyes and managed to smile without embarrassing herself. She wiped her hands on her trousers and hopped out of the grave, Chaeyoung for her part began looking around to figure out how sge was going to escape before a dead tiger landed on top of her (not everyone was as tall as Little-Miss-Pretty-Long-Legs) then a hand appeared from above. For a reason she couldn’t explain Chaeyoung felt nervous about taking it, but after a moment did so and allowed Tzuyu to pull her up. When the elder of the two couldn’t bring herself to touch the tigers body, Tzuyu said she could go if she wished - only Chaeyoung found she didn’t want to go just yet, so settled for watching as Tzuyu rolled up her sleeves and dragging the tiger to the grave. She found her focus on the tensing arm muscles Tzuyu had, every time she pulled the tiger her arms would tense showing off firm defined biceps.

“Wow,” Chaeyoung hummed once the tiger had been dropped in the hole, “You’re pretty strong.”

“I…er…you thank…..” Tzuyu rethought her sentence, “Th-Thank you….I meant thank you.”

Tzuyu didn’t know if the mistake came from exhaustion or just her general social awkwardness….or the fact that Chaeyoung was probably the most amazing person she’d ever seen and they were less than a meter from one another and had touched hands.

Pushing the earth back over the tiger was much easier than the digging but still, by the time they were done night had fallen. They stood back to marvel at their work, both tired from the hard labour. Chaeyoung felt once more like she should be the one to break this silence, however before she could there was a little whimper from behind them and Tzuyu span with worry etched on her face. The black hound was laying on the floor whining from its injuries, the other hounds around it standing protectively and growled when Chaeyoung tried to get too close only for Tzuyu to scold them lightly. She knelt next to the dog who tried to move closer but was stopped by gentle hands, Tzuyu looked over his wounds with pure heartbreak on her face. When it’s muzzle shifted on to her lap she stroked its head gently, hushing its cries.

“Could you hand me my satchel?” Tzuyu asked quietly, gay nerves replaced by worry for one of her own,

Chaeyoung immediately broke out of her stupor and ran to where she remembered the satchel being, once in her possession she ran back, surprised the dogs let her past. Tzuyu rummaged through her back and produced some gauze, a bottle of water and antiseptic wipes. The dog immediately tried to move away when the water first touched the wound so Chaeyoung found herself holding its head in place. Tzuyu thanked her softly and continued dressing the dogs wounds as best she could.

“He’ll need stitches….” Tzuyu announced sadly, looking at a gash on his front,

“Do you have that?”

Tzuyu nodded, “Back at my cabin…but I don’t want to leave him out in the cold.”

Chaeyoung had noticed the chill that had come from the fall of night and knew that the dog wouldn’t fair well in this condition.

“We’ll have to take him back to camp.” Chaeyoung said,

Tzuyu sighed, “I’ll have to carry him, I don’t think he can walk like this.”

It was then Chaeyoung heard a sniffle, she turned to see that Tzuyu had a tear rolling down her cheek, “Please don’t cry, he’ll be okay.”

She placed her hand on the taller girl’s shoulder, only for Tzuyu to visibly wince and try to pretend she hadn’t.

“You can’t lift him, not if you’re hurt.”

Tzuyu shook her head, “I can, I just pulled a muscle dragging the tiger.”

Chaeyoung sent her a look, “No way, let me do it.”

“But….” Gay-Panic-Tzuyu was not a smart Tzuyu, “You’re so small….”

Chaeyoung scoffed, “I may be small but I am mighty. Besides…he saved me, I owe him.”

To prove her point she carefully gathered the hound into her arms and stood, albeit quite shakily, the dog was heavy and grumbling at being held by someone he didn’t know. They snuck him all the way to Tzuyu’s cabin, miraculously without getting caught. That night it was decided that there was a new beginning in the mist, the beginning of a beautiful friendship…for Chaeyoung at least Tzuyu was dreading the awkward mess she would soon become the more they hung out.

Little did they know, once they had walked out of the clearing a pair of hidden eyes watched them leave. This new development was a problem, but it wouldn’t stop the grand plan. Nothing would.


	3. Elkie Goddess of Snakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tzuyu makes a new friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Day 7 of 12 Days of Ficmas.
> 
> To see any days you may have missed follow @Elcten

** **Elkie Goddess of Snakes** **

** **

Tzuyu’s hound survived the night and after a week was able to return to the forest. Keeping that information from one of the disciples was difficult but Tzuyu roomed with Momo so there was no fear of her roommate ratting her out. Chaeyoung ended up popping by during the week to check on the hound that had saved her life, or at least that was her excuse. Chaeyoung put it down to not wanting to see Mina and Nayeon together, the idea of watching them be a couple in front of her salad did not appeal to her.

The rare times Tzuyu joined them for meals were better, Chaeyoung was able to sit with Tzuyu, Momo and Dahyun who quickly took her mind of everything. But hanging in Tzuyu’s room alone watching her nurture her dog was different. It had been awkward her first visit, she and Tzuyu were both quiet by nature and so it was silent in the room. The shorter girl found herself watching how tentatively Tzuyu looked over the animal, the very real pain that flashed through her eyes whenever the poor thing whined.

The second day Chaeyoung went over Tzuyu confessed she liked animals more than people, Chaeyoung didn’t know how to take that. But given Tzuyu hadn’t asked her to leave (or gotten Momo to kick her out) she assumed her presence was welcomed.

Each day the longer Chaeyoung sat there, the more both girls would bring up random topics to make the silence less awkward and break the tension that suffocated them that first day. Tzuyu found the easiest way to get Chaeyoung talking was to bring up a topic she was interested in, like art. Her eyes would shine so bright Tzuyu worried Apollo would arrive to drag them across the sky and she’d talk with her hands making large gestures to make Tzuyu understand the gravitas of what she was saying. Even if Tzuyu had no idea what she was going on about, seeing Chaeyoung talk so animatedly made her smile and hang on every word. Every visit they got better and better at talking to each other, conversations went from gently discussing the weather between awkward pauses to deep discussions on life as a whole.

Tzuyu learned that Chaeyoung couldn’t wait to be released from this camp, she wanted to travel the mortal world and see everything. She wanted to look upon the creations of both the Gods and man with her own eyes, take in the beauty of the real world outside. But Tzuyu was shocked to learn it wasn’t just the beauty Chaeyoung wanted, the Gods made sure their children only saw beautiful things (as the child of a top tier Goddess, Chaeyoung had been raised on Olympus).

The daughter of Athena wished to see the real world as it was, imperfect or chaotic. She wanted to find beauty in the imperfection, see the places the Gods had not touched with good fortune. Chaeyoung had been raised in a world that was pristine and marble, but she wanted more than anything to experience dirt and cobblestone. The desire was to explore the unknown.

Chaeyoung learned that Tzuyu had been very sheltered, with just herself and her mother in the forests until Momo and her mother came to visit. It was the reason for the duos closeness, Momo was one of the few people Tzuyu would see in the forest and at that was the only one her age. Tzuyu divulged her mother had taught her young that people (Gods or mortal) could not be trusted, only the few she allowed passage through the woods were safe enough for Tzuyu to associate with.

She told Chaeyoung that the origin of this was the quest a lot of males had to be the one to de-flower the Goddess of Virgins. When the men would come to the forest to woo her the animals would often defend them, if not the archery skill both women had would suffice. The camp was the first time she had been around so many people so of course she came across rather anti-social. When Chaeyoung asked what Tzuyu would do after the camp, the tall girl shrugged - she supposed she would return to the forest her mother resided in. Chaeyoung didn’t know how well she liked the idea of Tzuyu going back to living in fear of outsiders, she was too sweet for that.

Soon the time came to take the hound back to the forest, his wounds had begun to heal nicely and now he just needed to get his strength back with his brothers. Both girls were somewhat sad about this, sure it was great that he had recovered so well but Tzuyu was going to miss spending time with her crush as selfish as it was and Chaeyoung was going to miss Tzuyu…….Tzuyu being her excuse to avoid Mina and Nayeon of course. The next day Tzuyu thought everything was back to normal and so went back to skipping breakfast in order to go into the forest with her bow. It had shocked her when Chaeyoung appeared to join her, more so when the black hound barked at his brothers for growling at her presence.

Then everything became normal, Chaeyoung would join her every day still under the guise of avoiding Mina and they would either talk about everything and anything or just do their own thing in one another’s presence. Chaeyoung liked to draw the forest, from the random animals that would pass them to the flowers that spread across the woodland floor, while Tzuyu either read her book or practised her archery.

It was a day like this everything kicked off.

Chaeyoung was in a contemplative mood and so sat quietly, drawing pictures in the dirt, deep in thought. Tzuyu was next to her, the grey hounds head nestled in her lap as his brothers played together nearby, she had a book in her hand having noted the weird tension but too awkward to address it. She would come to find out Mina had accosted Chaeyoung on her way to the forest, asking why she had been avoiding the group - it was noticeable, especially to Mina whom Chaeyoung used to follow around like a second shadow.

Sure, the older girl had been spending more time with Nayeon but she had still noted Chaeyoung’s absence, as well as her sudden take towards the daughter of Artemis. It was strange, Mina cared deeply for Nayeon and that wasn’t in question, however she was beginning to feel somewhat jealous that Chaeyoung’s attentive behaviour was no longer on her. As selfish as that was, Mina had grown used to having Chaeyoung at her beck and call, for her to no longer do the small things Mina would leave for her to do became noticeable. So that morning before Chaeyoung had gotten to the forest, Mina had intercepted her and demanded to know why Chaeyoung was avoiding her.

Now, Chaeyoung was nothing if not honest. Not in the adorably blunt way Tzuyu would blurt out whatever she was thinking due to awkwardness, but in her careful from-the-heart manner that was so Chaeyoung. She explained that she was still recovering from her crush and so thought some space between them would do them good, Mina had pouted and begged Chaeyoung to join her for breakfast. She said she missed her best friend and Chaeyoung found that none of those actions hit her the way they used to.

The pouting didn’t make her heart flutter, the begging didn’t make her want to yield, the label of best friend not crushing her heart in a vice as it once did. Not wanting to leave Tzuyu hanging, due to it being impolite of course, Chaeyoung refused but alas - she was no woman of stone and so promised Mina that she would join her tomorrow morning. That had sated the older girl who hugged Chaeyoung before practically skipped to the cafeteria, her hug was colder than Chaeyoung remembered, no longer filling her with warmth and butterflies.

“Tzuyu?” Chaeyoung said breaking the silence,

The girl in the question didn’t look up from her book, but did hum to show she was listening.

“Have you ever loved someone that didn’t love you back?”

ALERT! ALERT! SHE’S ON TO YOU! GAY PANIC INITIATED! ACT NORMAL! REPEAT! ACT NORMAL YOU GAY MESS!!

Tzuyu cleared her throat, now refusing to look up, “Maybe once.”

“I have.” Chaeyoung sighed, the defeated sound in her voice prompting Tzuyu to look up,

She looked sad.

“You okay?” Tzuyu asked, shuffling over a little to her and ignoring the whine of the grey hound as he lost his head rest,

Chaeyoung sent her a tight lipped smile before looking back down at the dirt at her fingertips, “I don’t know if you know this but I used to have crush on one of the daughters of Aphrodite - Mina.”

Of course Tzuyu knew, she had EYES.

“Who doesn’t?” Tzuyu decided not to embarrass her,

“True,” Chaeyoung chuckled, “I was so in love with her I thought it would kill me, literally she could have requested anything of me and I would have done it. No questions asked.”

Tzuyu’s gut twisted.

“Isn’t she with Nayeon?” Tzuyu asked somewhat insensitively,

Chaeyoung nodded, “That’s why I’ve been avoiding them…”

Ouch, Tzuyu felt her chest ache - so Chaeyoung didn’t want to hang out with her? She just had no other options….fair enough.

“I thought Mina was the one; beautiful, kind, from a good lineage--”

Sana was right…

“---but she loved someone else and it hurt, a lot. So I stayed away.”

Tzuyu hummed again, now focused on not letting the tears in her eyes leak out. She would be strong as her mother taught her, not showing her weakness.

“I ran into her earlier, I’d been scared everything I’d worked hard to get over would come back. But it didn’t, I didn’t feel anything. But how could I get over something like that so quickly, I thought she was the one. The one! And I got over her that quickly.”

“There’s no specific time it takes to get over someone,” Tzuyu said in the monotone voice Chaeyoung recognised as being for strangers only, “It could take years or days, you probably accepted long ago that nothing would happen between you, the recent pain just came from confirmation that you and her weren’t meant to be. With the hope you clung to taken away you can truly move on.”

“You’re right. Besides I promised to join her at breakfast tomorrow so we’ll see if I hold up.”

Tzuyu said nothing.

“You okay?”

“I just thought we were friends,” Tzuyu told her bluntly, “I didn’t realise I was just a back up choice so you could avoid Mina.”

Chaeyoung looked horrified, “That wasn’t what I meant!”

Tzuyu hummed yet again and stood, retrieving her bow from where it leant against a tree. Chaeyoung followed, pulling Tzuyu by the shoulder to look at her.

“I’ve really enjoyed our time together, I promise. I value your friendship and believe me when I say I know what it means to have your trust. It’s an honour I don’t take lightly.”

Tzuyu looked at her with a blank expression, appearing to be searching her face for something. Lies, Chaeyoung would later come to realise. It took a lot to gain Tzuyu’s trust, one wrong move and she would lose it forever. Chaeyoung didn’t want that, she liked Tzuyu. Liked spending time with her even when they didn’t speak for hours, she refused to let a little mistake in wording ruin a relationship she had come to value. When Tzuyu’s face softened a little, the shorter girl breathed a sigh of relief - glad that Tzuyu realised Chaeyoung was not trying to mislead her.

It had been somewhat sad the following day when Tzuyu had gone to the forest alone that morning, having grown used to her crushes company. She wasn’t aware she was being watched until it was too late. She had been too wrapped up in her own little world as she fired arrow after arrow.

“Hi!”

Tzuyu whirled round in shock, her hounds growling at the newcomer. She said nothing, instead silently watched this woman approach. She was very pretty, the same way the daughters of Aphrodite were. It was like this ethereal thing drawing Tzuyu closer, beckoning her forward. Love me, trust me, devote yourself to me - all little things whispering in the back of Tzuyu’s now foggy mind.

“I’m Elkie,” The girl introduced when close enough, “I hope you don’t mind, I’m new and I’m struggling being around so many people.”

Tzuyu smiled, “I get that. You may stay if you like.”

Her hounds continued growling and she turned to them, “Stop it!”

Elkie giggled, “It’s alright.”

She walked forward and scratched behind the ears of the dark brown hound, he stopped growling and appeared to fall under her spell. One by one the other hounds followed except for the black hound who kept on guard, he didn’t like this person.

“Wow, nobodies ever won them over that quick!”

Elkie smiled kindly, “I have a way with people and…err…hounds I suppose.”

Tzuyu chuckled, “Anyway, you are welcome to stay just mind out for the arrows.”

As Tzuyu went back to focusing on the target she could feel Elkie watching her from her place on a fallen log. It made her nervous in a similar way being around Chaeyoung did. Except there was something else there that she couldn’t place. All she knew was that it got worse when Elkie placed a hand on her shoulder after a little while. Tzuyu’s stomach erupted in butterflies but she fired her arrow, hitting a ten. At least she didn’t lose her cool.

She turned to look at her new companion, trying not to buckle under an intense gaze, “What can I do for you?”

“Would you teach me to shoot an arrow?”

Tzuyu paused a moment, nothing wrong with a quick lesson. She handed Elkie the bow and showed her how to stand.

“Now notch the arrow.” Tzuyu told her,

Elkie tried but deliberately made a mess of it, going as far as nearly piercing her foot by dropping th arrow. Tzuyu caught it, luckily, but decided to help her out. She stood behind her and guided the strangers hands. She didn’t think twice about it, it was just an archery lesson. She rested her head on the girls shoulder so she could speak quietly in her ear.

“Draw back…”

Tzuyu helped position the bow a little.

“Aim…”

Elkie did so, pressing back into Tzuyu ever so slightly.

“Fire!”

The arrow released and hit a nine. Elkie began jumping up and down, “I did it!”

She turned to Tzuyu with a sly smile.

“You’re a good teacher.”

“Um…thanks!” Tzuyu blushed,

Chaeyoung watched from afar as Tzuyu stood so close to this girl. Something all too familiar hurt in her chest but she refused to entertain it. She had left breakfast when it was clear Mina and Nayeon were just going to flirt the whole time. Deciding not to intervene since Tzuyu was oh so busy, Chaeyoung crept back to camp. Something didn’t seem right, who was that girl? More importantly who was her parent. Something felt off and Chaeyoung didn’t like the idea of Tzuyu getting hurt if this girl had ill intentions.

She would have to do some snooping, she wasn’t dumb - she knew when she was feeling jealous.

But jealous of what she still wasn’t completely sure, but she’d figure it out.

And then she’d deal with the bitch.


	4. Tzuyu Goddess of Obliviousness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to just get this out of my drafts, sorry if it's anti-climactic

** **Tzuyu Goddess of Obliviousness** **

** **

It went on for weeks.

Chaeyoung would go to the forest to join Tzuyu, only to find Elkie already there and talking to her. They’d be laughing about something or whispering amongst themselves, it made a knife twist in Chaeyoung’s stomach and she would just turn and walk away. Mina had been glad to have her best friend back but it was obvious that Chaeyoung’s mood had changed. She no longer listening in conversations and seemed sad and distracted. Like her mind was off somewhere else.

Everyone had noticed actually, including Momo who had also begun to see less and less of Tzuyu. Something felt off about this new friend of hers and she voiced this privately to Dahyun who got their friends to do some digging. Growing up, Momo had seen many men pursue Artemis. She had wondered when these suitors would start going for Tzuyu too, she didn’t trust anyone she didn’t know being around her friend. However, everytime Momo tried to join them Elkie made sure she was edged out. Filling silences with inside jokes or references which Momo couldn’t understand.

But Tzuyu never really noticed.

On Tzuyu’s side she just put Chaeyoung’s absence down to her being back under Mina’s spell. It hurt but her new friend helped. Tzuyu had decided that if Chaeyoung wanted to follow Mina’s coattails then fine, that was her decision. But she resented that she had been the back-up. Chaeyoung had lied to her face about her not being a second choice. Tzuyu had been a fool to trust her and rather than confront her and gain false apology, Tzuyu opted to just stick with Elkie.

They had gotten very close over the weeks, Elkie just had this ability to make Tzuyu talk. To divulge information about herself that she usually kept close to her chest. For once Tzuyu wasn’t the one listening to everybody else’s problems. It was nice. Elkie listened to her and comforted her, she had this aura that just made Tzuyu trust her. Like one of those beautiful flowers that snaps it’s jaws shut when a fly landed on it. Outsiders viewed it as Tzuyu being under a spell and not being able to break free.

But in the end it was Sana that filled in the dots.

It was breakfast time when the ball dropped. Sana burst into the food hall and all but ran up to their table. Chaeyoung had been playing with her food, occasionally looking up at the empty seat at the back of the room and ignoring the conversation around her. Nobody said anything about her behaviour, Chaeyoung was an artist and therefore got into these broody moods. She’d talk to them if she needed to, but for now they just stayed silently supportive.

“Peitho!” Sana shouted when she got to them,

“Gesundheit!” Was Dahyun’s response, earning sniggers,

Sana rolled her eyes, “No! Elkie’s mother! Her name’s Peitho!”

Chaeyoung looked up at the mention of her enemy.

“Like…mothers hand maiden Peitho?” Mina asked,

“The same!” Sana replied, taking her usual seat, “I brought up Elkie to mother and she told me who she was.”

“So?” Jihyo inquired, “If you hadn’t noticed we’re all from godly bloodlines.”

“Peitho is the Goddess of Persuasion and Seduction.” Sana told them, “There’s a rumour she approached Artemis more than once to attempt to seduce her, but Apollo ran her off.”

“But what does that have to do with Elkie and Tzuyu?” Jeongyeon asked,

Chaeyoung and Momo sat bolt upright.

“There’s been competition amongst the male Gods for aeons to take the chastity of Artemis.” Momo explained, “When Tzuyu came of age that extended to her.”

“Elkie’s trying to seduce her.” Chaeyoung muttered,

Then suddenly the girl was on her feet and running out to the forest. A disciple tried to stop her but she just shoved past him, she’d take her punishment later. Chaeyoung hadn’t really thought through what she was going to say, all she knew was that she needed to protect Tzuyu. Innocent, naive Tzuyu who probably did not realise there was a snake in her midst.

They had so many conversations in which Tzuyu confessed that she struggled trusting people due to the actions towards her mother. That she too were afraid people were only getting close to her for an immoral purpose. Tzuyu had once said she did not want to take a vow of chastity like her mother wanted, but it was not something she would give up lightly.

Suddenly Chaeyoung wanted to kick herself, she should have stuck around and made sure Elkie had no ill will. No hidden agendas. But instead she had disappeared to lick her wounds rather that confront the attraction she had developed for the younger girl. It had been a mistake and she needed to rectify it before someone got hurt.

“TZUYU!” Chaeyoung called as she skidded into the forest,

The tall girl turned to look at her, Elkie looking someone disgruntled at the interruption. Immediately the black hound ran over and, once Chaeyoung had stopped to catch her breath, began nuzzling into her leg. She noted all the hounds were far from Elkie, looking as though they did not trust her either. Poor Tzuyu just looked confused, setting down her bow and walking over to her friend.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes…” Chaeyoung was panted, “Need…to…talk…alone…I really need to work out more.”

Tzuyu smiled, good naturedly, then turned to where Elkie sat, “El, can you leave us for a moment?”

Elkie looked hesitant, Chaeyoung noting she was sat where SHE should be sitting, “Of course!”

She stood to walk past them, touching Tzuyu’s shoulder gently as she past and nearly shoulder barging Chaeyoung. The black hound growled lowly at that.

“He really liked you,” Tzuyu chuckled, watching the hound get as close to Chaeyoung as possible, “They haven’t really warmed to Elkie yet.”

“Good.”

“Huh?”

“Tzuyu, Sana did some digging and Elkie’s bad news---”

“Sana?” Tzuyu’s face lost it’s smile, “Sana’s a bitch.”

Chaeyoung blinked, Tzuyu never swore.

“Tzuyu!”

“She is! When we first became friends she told me…” Tzuyu trailed off, “Never mind, it’s not important. Look I know Elkie.”

“Do you!?” Chaeyoung was desperate, “Tzuyu her mother is the Goddess of Seduction--”

“So?”

“---and persuasion--”

“Why is this important?”

“WILL YOU JUST LISTEN!?” Chaeyoung yelled, furious that Tzuyu was being so uncharacteristically difficult, “Her mother tried and failed to seduce yours. We think she’s trying to get to you instead.”

Tzuyu stared at her, stoic. Arms folded, shielding herself from Chaeyoung’s words. For a moment the elder of the two thought what she had said was finally getting through to her, but life likes to make things to complicated sometimes. And Elkie had her claws in deep.

“Is this about Mina?”

“I--What!?”

“Is this about Mina?” Tzuyu pinched the bridge of her nose, “Look you can’t just pick me up and drop me whenever Mina clicks her fingers, that’s not fair.”

“This has nothing to do with Mina!”

“Then why aren’t you at breakfast? And don’t pretend you care about my well being.”

Chaeyoung’s voice dropped, honestly stunned, “Of course I care about you…”

“Please.” Tzuyu actually scoffed, “I haven’t seen you in weeks, one breakfast with Mina and you left me behind.”

“That wasn’t what--”

“Chaeyoung, it’s okay.” Tzuyu sighed, “Sana was right, top tier Gods don’t mingle with anything less. I was stupid to get my hopes up.”

“Do you really think I believe that?” Chaeyoung asked, tears pricking her eyes, “That I’m that pretentious?”

Tzuyu sighed, “I don’t think it’s intentional. I just think that’s the way it is.”

It was like a slap in the face.

“You know what?” Chaeyoung was offended, “If you think so little of me then I’ll let you make your own mistakes.”

“Good.”

Chaeyoung turned round, heart breaking even more when the hound whined at the loss and began walking away, “I’ll listen when you’re ready to apologise.” She paused and looked back, “This isn’t you, Tzuyu. She ruined you.”

And she walked away.

Tzuyu watched her go, heart twisting in her chest. But she stood by what she said. How dare Chaeyoung barge in here and tell her Elkie was bad news? Chaeyoung didn’t even know her! In fact if anything had become clear recently it was the fact that Tzuyu would always be second to Mina. Chaeyoung had disappeared for weeks, randomly and suddenly. After all she had said about her valuing their friendship, her vanishing act hurt.

For Christ sake they weren’t all like their parents! Tzuyu wasn’t interested in chastity or children, Elkie wasn’t a nightmare, Mina wasn’t flirty, Jihyo didn’t fling lightening bolts everywhere and even Chaeyoung herself wanted to travel the mortal world. They couldn’t judge each other based on the actions of their parents. That wasn’t fair, they were their own people!

Tzuyu huffed and sat on a fallen log, head in her hands. Her hounds whimpered a little, not used to their master being upset, but Tzuyu ignored them. She just needed a second to regain control. But the fates never had been in her favour and she heard a twig snap nearby. Lifting her head she saw it was only Elkie, the girl joining her on the log and ignoring the soft growls from the hounds.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” Tzuyu sighed, “Chaeyoung just gets to me.”

“I noticed.”

Silence.

“Is she why you hold back with me?”

“Huh?” Tzuyu looked at her, confused,

Elkie shrugged, “Y’know, there’s an attraction between us. But you’ve never made a move.”

Tzuyu swallowed, “That’s…That’s something different.”

Elkie faced her, “Then kiss me.”

“What?”

“Come on,” Elkie smirked, “Why hold out? You want to, I want to…if Chaeyoung’s not the problem what is?”

Tzuyu stammered, a bit taken aback. Then the familiarity of the situation hit and she felt very, very, very stupid. She stood and put some distance between them.

“Chaeyoung’s nothing to do with it.”

“Then kiss me.”

“No.”

“For the sake of the Gods Tzuyu!” Elkie was starting to crack, “Loosen up a bit, a kiss wont hurt you.”

Chaeyoung had been right.

“...come on don’t be a prude!”

Chaeyoung had been absolutely right.

“Everyone does it,” Elkie rationalised, “It’s normal.”

Elkie stood and walked towards her, Tzuyu backed up until she hit a tree.

“Don’t you like me?”

Then it was there again, this compulsion. Like Elkie was the only thing worth looking at. The panic began to subside, Tzuyu almost getting lost in the glint in the other girl’s eyes. She felt like she was floating and nearly wavered….very nearly.

But Momo to the rescue.

“HEY!”

Elkie span round.

“She said no.” Momo growled storming over to pull Elkie away,

“Sorry, who the fuck are you?”

“You biggest nightmare if you don’t get out of here now and leave my friend alone.”

Now Momo was adorable. She was sweet and kind, the word soft had been used to describe her more than once. But in that moment she was terrifying. Her voice was monotone, her body poised to fight this bitch if need be. Even Tzuyu, who had known Momo for a long time, was a little shaken by this new protective Momo. Momo would throw down for any of her friends, she’d destroy a bitch for Dahyun but she would straight up murder for Tzuyu.

Elkie turned to Tzuyu for help.

“You should go.” Tzuyu said stoically, “And don’t come back.”

“I’ll show you the way.”

Momo, with a strength nobody knew she had, grabbed Elkie’s arm and yanked her towards the forest exit. She knew Tzuyu well enough to know she would want to be alone for a while, then later Momo would confront her in the privacy of their room. It was how they worked, Tzuyu needed time to process things before any comfort or attention.

Tzuyu turned and rested her head on the tree.

Then, from somewhere she didn’t know she could access, she screamed out into the trees.

It felt good but after her throat hurt and she felt tired.

She lay on the ground, ignoring the dirt and leaves. Settling to just watch the clouds scroll across the sky as the hounds lay around her. She refused to cry, it wasn’t in her nature. But she did feel sad. No longer angry or stressed, just a deep sadness. The type that washes over you that you can either fight and struggle against or just succumb to. Sometimes it was okay to be sad.

Maybe this was all for the best?

She had been stupid, thinking that something like love was truly in her future. She was Tzuyu, Goddess of Virgins like her mother and her mother before her. When camp ended and the others all went on with their lives she would go back to the forest and be just like her mother. Was that really so bad? She knew forests, she was always safe there. If a stranger was in the forest she knew not to trust them.

She could go back to bathing in the beautiful waterfall, tend to the little animals and plant trees. Momo could occasionally visit with Dahyun, they’d probably marry at some point and perhaps Zeus would gift them children of their own. Her mother would love to look after them while Tzuyu, Momo and Dahyun explored the forest.

No complications, no drama. Just Tzuyu back in her forest.

Love was just something that would never happen for her and maybe that was okay.

Tzuyu sat up, she was putting to much pressure on crushes and love. They weren’t the be all and end all, she could live a happy life on her own. Maybe if she embraced the loneliness…no…embraced the independence she would be able to live a fulfilling life. And she did have a good life. Her mother loved her, she had a true friend in Momo who was her platonic soulmate. So she never had a great love, so what? She didn’t need it. She would be single.

And that was okay…

Except…

Chaeyoung still hung heavily in her mind.

She needed to apologise, she had been under a spell and had lashed out. At the very least she wanted to repair the friendship they had once had. You can’t turn attraction off like a light switch, as much as Tzuyu wished she could. But Tzuyu realised that while being with Chaeyoung romantically would be amazing, Tzuyu was just as amazing on her own. Instead of willing and wishing it, sometimes you had to let fate run its course and find happiness wherever it left you.

Tzuyu stood, dusting the dirt off her trousers and turned to go find Chaeyoung and apologise.

Only to find said girl awkwardly standing there.

“I umm…saw Momo dragging Elkie away muttering about drowning her in the creek.” Chaeyoung explained rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly, “Are you okay? Did she hurt you?”

“No.” Tzuyu answered, “I’m so sorry. I should’ve--”

“It’s okay,” Chaeyoung walked towards her, “I should have stuck around to make sure things were okay, not just run off.”

Tzuyu shook her head, “No, I should have listened. You wouldn’t lie to me like that, I was just desperate to have someone put me first for once y’know?”

Chaeyoung hummed before getting distracted by the hounds, who were suddenly all keen to get her attention. Tzuyu smiled at the scene, her hounds hated everyone but her and Momo. Chaeyoung must be a good person if they had all grown attached to her, maybe Tzuyu should listen to them more.

Chaeyoung looked up and smiled back, “What?”

“Nothing,” Tzuyu coughed, “Can I ask you something?”

Chaeyoung nodded and sat on the floor, Tzuyu went and sat next to her - she laid back again. If they made eye contact she didn’t know if she would be able to continue with gay panicking. The other girl lay next to her, letting the hounds lay around them.

“If you didn’t avoid me because of Mina…where’d you go?”

Chaeyoung took a deep breath, now or never, “I was jealous.”

“Jealous?”

“I spent so much time earning your trust and Elkie just swooped in. You looked at her like she was the most important thing in the world and I…”

“You?”

“I wanted you to look at me like that.”

“Wait, what!?”

“At first I thought it was a rebound crush but when Elkie came along I realised it was the real deal.” Chaeyoung blushed, “And now I want to go die in a hole.”

Tzuyu was stunned, Chaeyoung liked her? Daughter of Athena, long time crush, cute as a button Chaeyoung liked awkward, nerdy, Goddess of Virgins Tzuyu? Nope. Where are the hidden cameras? Where’s Rick Astley - Tzuyu’s getting rickrolled. But instead Chaeyoung’s words hung in the air, prompt Tzuyu into the gay panic she had tried to avoid.

“Can you please say something, cause I’m feeling a little vulnerable here?”

Tzuyu finally breathed. Words were going to fail her, she had never been good with them. So instead of some big dramatic speech about how she had adored Chaeyoung since she met her and how she had longed for this moment. Instead of a deep confession that left both crying on the forest floor or prompted a big romantic kiss, Tzuyu chose something simpler.

She reached her hand across the gap and grabbed Chaeyoung’s, squeezing it gently.

“I like you too.”

“Good.”

And that was it, after all the panic and heartbreak there was this moment. It was anti-climatic and so not dramatic like the movies depicted but it was good enough for them. They just lay there on the floor of the forest and watched the clouds cross the sky, hands tightly clamped together. It was so simple but to them it was perfect. Sometimes the ride is bumpy but it just makes the final destination all the more worth it.

Goddess of Virgins and the Goddess of the Friendzone - together at last.

Gay panicking together as opposed to apart.


End file.
